Fifty Words
by Konsui's Little Brother
Summary: Fifty words. Fifty chapters. Fifty views of Kuwabara that you've never seen before.
1. Lights

A/N: Okay, so I know that the beginning of this is odd and not very good but I would like it you would read it all the way through, and if you're really nice you could read my other stories, but I don't want any flames. My next order of business is to tell you that it's Botan telling the story. I couldn't find a place to fit her name in this so that it still sounded right.

1. LIGHTS

From a young age Kazuma Kuwabara has been able to see things that other people can't, not just ghosts but what he calls auras. He explained it to me, a long time ago. The way he worded it...I still remember. He said that everyones aura was different, he'd never seen an adult with the same colored aura as someone else before. In fact, the only time he had was when he was in the hospital and had passed the Maternity Ward.

Infants all had the same color aura, a stark clean white. He said that it was because they hadn't seen the real world yet, they hadn't been exposed to anything. As you grow, your aura changes and darkens, never straying from it's original color just changing shades, only turning black when you died. He also told me about the Rekai Tentai's auras.

When he first met them, their auras were different from what they are now. Hiei's had been a dark red, almost black in color, while Kurama's was always changing. Sometimes it would be a light pink, signifing that he was closer to being Suichi, while other times it would be a deep purple, which ment he was closer to being Yoko. Yusuke had a sky blue aura that had been different than anything else, it was the same clear blue that he had had since they first met.

The funny thing about auras was that they could change. They reflected a persons expierence and their out-look on life. The closer to neon your aura was, the brighter your out-look on life was, which meant that if your out-look on life darkened or lightened, you aura changed to match it. I couldn't help myself when I heard this, I asked him how the teams auras had changed.

He told me that Kurama's hadn't changed much, it still switched between two colors but the colors themselves were different shades, a darker pink and a lighter purple. Hiei's had lightened too, the once near-black red was now a deep burgundy. And then the strangest look crossed his face and he was already walking away when he told me that Yusuke's was still 'That same uncaring blue he's always had.' And it's only now, all these years later, that I'm realizing he never told me what his aura looked like. The sad thing is...I think I already know.


	2. Fear

A/N: Before I get any complaints, I have gotten a few from my proof-reader, I would like to point out the all of the under-lined 'him' and 'he's are the same person. They are not Rinku. I would also like to apologize for the confusing-ness of this story. I wrote it late at night but I still felt that it should be posted. I would also like to point out that I take requests. If you give me the word and what you think should happen in the prompt, you may find your idea as a chapter.

On another note, I would like to send a shout out to everyone that reviewed, favortied, or alerted my story. Thank you WistfulSins, KuwabaraMikey, and The 13th Leprechaun! Now on with the story!

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It's nearing the end of the Tournament, the dreaded thing that he had never wanted to be in because he had thought it would be boring and easy. Rinku didn't think he could have been more wrong because this thing, it wasn't a tournament anymore because those were suppossed to be fun and this was anything but fun, this thing was turning out to be the most terrifing moment in his short life.

Wind was everywhere, it was whiping and tearing and trying to rip him to shreds and he just couldn't get away from it. Rinku didn't care about the wind anymore though, it had scared him to begin with but now his mind was solely on the fight in front of him. The fight that would decide his life and the fight that would undoubtably kill the only human that he had ever feared.

Rinku had been scared when he fought him. Those blue eyes staring at him defiantly, telling him that he wasn't going to go down that easily as he got up time after time after time even when he shouldn't have been alive anymore. And not just in that fight either, but in every fight that he had been in. The odds were always against him and he had never given up even when the fight ended with him bleeding on the ground.

Now, from up in the stands with the wind tearing at him, he knew that this fight was going to end differently. He knew that Togoro wasn't like the other demons, he wasn't going to let him go with a few broken bones and a gash or two. Togoro would kill him, the only human who had ever left Rinku truly afraid.

Down in the arena, he said something. Rinku didn't know what, the wind drowned out all noise. Or he thought it did, Yusuke's screams pierced through even the winds wild howls. Togoro moved, Kuwabara moved, the two met in the middle with a resounding blast of spirit energy and blood. And as Kazuma Kuwabara fell, a steady pool of crimson growing beneath him, so did Rinku's hopes of survival.


	3. Human

A/N: Okay, this is my worst one by far. It's done in Koenma's PoV and is only being posted because I've decided not to write anything that I'm not going to post.

Thank you everyone for reviewing, favoriting, and putting me and my story on alert.

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**Human**

They think it's an insult. Calling him human, that is. They don't realize that while it's a disadvantage in fights it's the only thing that keeps him sane. He never speaks to anyone about it, not even my ferry-girl Botan, but I know it's there. Being the Prince of Spirit World I'm privy to the knowledge floating around in Ogre's mind, he notices the oddest things after all and this proved to be one of the more important bits of nonsense that he had floating around his mind.

As Ogre so eloquently pointed out to me, he doesn't get angry when someone mocks him for being human anymore, rather he keeps fighting at what-ever pace he was going at. The comment just goes over his head. Unless one of his team-mates makes the comment, then he grins at them and laughs at what-ever the joke revolving around him was.

And to think that Ogre saw it and not me. 'It' being the fact that Kuwabara was well aware that he wasn't going to live as long as the rest of his team-mates. Even if he doesn't die from the fact that he is constantlytaking on demons stronger than him, which is also something that Ogre kindly pointed out to me, he has a human life-span. The others have the life-span of a demon, which is infinitely longer than that of a human, and he knows it.

It's a pity really because despite what I'm constantly saying he is a very valuable asset to this team and I don't particularly want to lose him just yet, though Jin would make an excellant replacement, the rest of the teams drive just wouldn't be there any more.

So even though being human is holding him back and cutting his life shorter than his team-mates, it's not an insult to him because being human is keeping him from being like them. Like the creatures that he fights and the team-mates that are slowly losing their humanity. And I'm quite positive that Ogre will never let me live down the fact that he noticed this before I did.


	4. Gossip

A/N: I'm still alive! Though my followers for this story probably aren't...If it makes you all feel better, I'll be trying to update more often. ^.^' So the prompt for this one is the word 'gossip'. Not my best work, but oh well.

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**Gossip:**

The words were always floating around; drifting through the halls of Koenma's castle, around the back alleys of the human world, even among the dusty old bars in the demon world. They were always there, scathing and hateful. But, sometimes, the words whispered were true.

The first time Hiei heard them, it had sent a jolt through his body. He hadn't ever really thought about it before the rumors started to flow. But the ogres in Spirit World, with nothing else but paper-work to fill their time, had latched onto the knowledge and told anyone that would listen.

The second time he heard it, it was from a thug whose path he crossed in the Human World. The thug had used a different set of words, a different ending, but they had meant the same thing. And they dug into Hiei just as sharply. Because he _hadn't_ thought of it first.

The third time was what really got him though. The whole bar had been in a buzz, a group of rouge demons all discussing the possibility that came with it. They were going to use the knowledge differently then the others had, for their own means and their own goals. Hiei slaughtered them all, right where they stood. He should have _known_!

Most days, the gossip stream was just that. Mindless prattle thought up by individuals that had nothing better to do in their lives then spread rumors about other people. But some days, everything that was said was the plain, brutal truth. And sometimes, it hit people that should have known what was being said before anyone else knew it. Later on, Hiei would confront Kuwabara about it. And the orange-haired oaf would just grin and laugh, brushing it away with an off-place joke and a subtle change of the subject. He'd tell Hiei it wasn't something the fire-demon needed to worry about. And Hiei would never forgive himself fully for not realizing that Kuwabara was a pure-blooded human, not fit for the world of demons. And one day, he would die.


	5. Counting

A/N: Here's another random word! Really. This was just chosen at random. I was looking around my living room and happened to glance at this magazine with the word on the cover. And that was how your chapter was chosen. Isn't it lovely to know that's hpw these things are picked?

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**Counting:**

1, 2, 3, 4, 5...the numbers ticked by in an endless fashion. Always looming above theirs heads, slowly counting down towards the looming **0** before they would fritz out and dissapear forever. And once they vanished, so too would the person they were attached to. Nothing more would be left of them but the memories they had instilled in other people.

There was a set over everyone's head. From the day they were born, a set amount of numbers appeared above their head. Always in black. Never white or silver or grey or any other color; just black. And then, when their first night descended upon them, the numbers started to decrease. One by one, night by night, until there was nothing left but a flickering black circle. And then they died, right there were they stood.

Demons, and half-demons, were not exempt from those numbers. This was something that Kazuma Kuwabara knew all too well. Deities and ferry-girls had them too; slowly ticking away and getting closer to their end. Lowering, lowering, and when they did he would forever be alone.

Like in every story, though, there is a price to this unpleasent power. Two really and niether was good. The first is that, no matter what he tries, the numbers cannot be changed. When they reach zero, then the person dies. No returns, no recounts. Just death.

The second is that Kazuma Kuwabara can never see his own set of numbers. Mirrors are empty and so is the air above his head. Never visible but the steady tick-ticking of them moving downwards is always there. Forever looming above him, one of the only secrets left gnawing at his mind.


	6. Less

A/N: Wow! Can you guys believe how quickly I'm popping these things out lately? It's actually pretty amazing! Though...my writing style might not be considered all that amazing...I'm just trying out different techniques. I hope you all don't mind too much.

In another note, this chapter was inspired by a review given to me by _Graphospasm_. It was his review that gave me the word 'less' so I hope you all appreciate him!

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**Less:**

Hours a day are spent as a team, training in a group under Koenma's command. They sparr with each other, sometimes without powers but normally with them, and they laugh and joke. As though their training really isn't that important. As though they won't loose their edge without it. Which really isn't that far from the truth, she muses.

Two of them are demons, a third is a half-demon. Creatures that are made to fight and made to win. And these sparrs aren't serious so no one ever looses; at least, those three never loose. The fourth has never managed to win even though he is the only one that is always serious. But that, Genkai thinks, is just the price one has to pay for being human.

They are always less. Weaker, slower, built without as much endurance. Kuwabara is no different despite what his team seem to think. He is less than a demon, less than a half-demon, less than any enemy they will ever be sent to face. Genkai knows this and she knows that he knows it too.

Still, she can't help the flicker of surprise that she feels when he shows up at her building complex long after the others have left. Gone on a mission, left him behind because he is 'less', claiming they didn't want him to get hurt. He knows better and so does she. They know that he is less than them and they don't want him to get in their way.

When he bows to her then, requesting the use of her compound and her guidance, she snorts and sits down the cup of tea she had been nursing. There's an air around him that she hasn't seen in a long time, not since Togoro was a human and she was a young girl in love, and she can't help thinking that sometimes...Less is more.


	7. Pieces

A/N: ...Not my best work, in my opinion. Hopefully all you wonderful reviewers *hinthint* will prove me wrong!

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**Pieces - **

I know that everyone usually just writes me off as the 'weak girl'. The one that's only good for being rescued and giving Yusuke extra incentive to win his fights. I'm not going to lie, it ticks me off. I guess I can see where they're coming from, seeing as I really am just a human girl, but I'm not completely useless. The name 'Keiko' hasn't been on the top of our school grade board for the past three years for nothing.

It really shouldn't take someone with academic smarts like mine to figure this out though. Really, common sense and a good observation skill is all that it takes. That's probably why none of the others have seen it though. They aren't exactly known for their common sense, Yusuke especially.

What I'm talking about is how they're loosing a member of their team without realizing it. I guess myself noticing it can be credited to being a pure-blooded human like he is. It just seems sort of there in my opionion. He's about to break and they just keep pushing and pushing. Pretty soon, there won't be anyone around for them to push though. Or rather, to push them. Because, if you think about, Kuwabara's the driving force behind that team; always making sure they keep going and the keep getting up.

Still, the fact is he's about to break and there won't be anything but useless pieces of him left. No one else is going to put up with their crap either, not like eh does. Even that pointy eared demon, Jin or Gen or whatever his name was, isn't going to deal with being the group punching bag for long. And he sure isn't going to go into situations he knows will kill him just so the others can get stronger and settle millenia old grudges. It's just not gonna happen.

They better start taking care of him if they don't want to pick his pieces up off the ground; bodily pieces and mental. I don't care what they think, a normal person can't last through all that stuff. The fact that Kuwabara's still going as strong as he is amazes me. He's just as stubborn as Yusuke is though, so I guess it really shouldn't. I just hope they realize what I've seen soon...


	8. Alone

A/N: I'm sorry for the utter horridness of this chapter. I just wanted to get something new posted. So it's pretty crappy. Also, for those who can't figure this out, the guy thinking/speaking is Sawamura.

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People used to say that I was a 'Lone Wolf' at school. Back before Kuwabara pulled me out of the pits, I was never with anyone. Didn't even have a family worth thinking about. I mean, they were all alive and everything, but they weren't anything to be proud of. So, if people thought about it, I wasn't really a loner in anything that I did.

Whatever the case, that's what they used to call me. Even when Kuwabara pulled me into his little group, I was the first one he'd actually 'taken in', they still thought I was a loner. Thing was, by that point, I really wasn't. I always had Kuwabara there for back up when I needed it, and then I had Okubo and Kirishima too. Those high-class bratts at school never knew what alone was. They couldn't tell if I even fit into that category or not. It was just a tag they stuck on me.

Anyway, I'm not trying to talk about me. I'm trying to get the word out to all those posers about who really is alone. Maybe some of that sorry group he's hanging out with now'll hear this and realize what's going on. Doubt it though. They're even denser than I am, and that's saying something.

So, the guy that's really alone is Kuwabara. Yeah, you all heard me right. Kuwabara. I bet your all thinking that he's got family and he's got us and he's got that other group he takes off with now but he's really all alone in this. He thinks he is at least, now that he's forgotten we're all there for him.

See, he doesn't have any parents. His sister's not a prize-pick either; smoker, drinker, heavy-swinger when she gets too mad. Then that new group, with Urameshi and those other two wierdos, they're always bashing him and snarking at him. Always bringing him back looking like death warmed over. Now put your noggin' to use. Just because he's not alone anymore, does that mean he won't feel alone? I know I'd feel pretty lonely if it were me there.


	9. Different

A/N: A different view-point from what I normaly write but I still really like it. Actually, I think this is one of my better drabbles. Enjoy!

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In three thousand years, Yoko had met and seen many things. Some were human, some demon, and others that fit into the same category as the creatures thought up in modern day horror tales. Each being had been of a seperate race or gender or time, each only seen once, and yet they had all somehow seemed the same.

The same mistakes were made. The same accomplishments, just different times and different countries. The same celebrations and the same fights. Even the wars were the same, all over more or less the same thing. Just because they weren't all human didn't make a difference. And, really, it was all rather boring.

Now days, Yoko wasn't allowed out much. He was kept locked away in the deepest recesses of Kurama's mind, lurking just close enough to the surface that every moment of the red-head's life was shown to him as it passed by. Sometimes, he even managed to get close enough to reality to influence his other self's decision.

It is on one such occasion that Yoko, the fox-demon who has lived longer than most beings could care to think about, comes to a conclusion. Most of Kurama's team-mates are just like everyone else that he's met over the years; destined to make the same sort of choices and face the same sort of problems. But one of them...One of them is just a little different.

The one with the orange-hair, Yoko never bothered to remember anyone's name, isn't like the others. Yes, he's been faced with the same problems as everyone else but his choices weren't so bland. So typical. And it only furthered his belief of the ignorance of human kind when he realized that no one else saw that; and furthered his scorn when no one noticed how the human began to waver.


	10. Hands

A/N: Look! It's a wild update! Amazing! It's not my favorite out of them, that still belongs to Yoko, but it's still pretty good I think. See if you can catch the reference to the last update; it should be fairly easy. ^.^ Oh, and would anyone be interested in seeing this expanded into a oneshot?

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**HANDS**

Kurama wasn't actually sure how no one had noticed it before. He dealt with Kuwabara almost every day; training with him, working with him, healing him! And this had been something that, up until this very moment, he had never taken notice of.

For a moment, Kurama found himself just staring at the hand. And, once more, he couldn't believe that after all the time he spent with the human he was just now noticing it. Tilting his head, green eyes narrowing, Kurama watched as the orange-haired human waved his hand through the air.

The difference between the two appendages was amazing, really. Kurama's hands were smooth and pale. They had no outward blemishes, no blisters or callouses, nothing that betrayed the fact that he fought on a daily basis. But...Kuwabara's hands were the complete oppisite. The skin was rough, darker in some spots than in others, and ragged. Callouses ran the length of his fingers, the base and tips of each one pale and pasty looking. Small scars, thin and white, criss-crossed the palms. They weren't just the hands of a fighter, they were the hands of something else. Something that Kurama wasn't used to seeing.

It was a harsh reminder that Kuwabara didn't have the healing powers that he or the others had. That he was just a human, nothing more than that. Injuries would leave scars and life would take it's toll; time would pass and Kuwabara would get weaker. Frailer. That he would age and, eventually, need to be replaced.

The thought made the fox-demons stomach roll and something in the darker parts of his mind lash in annoyance. There was no stopping life, just as there was no stopping death, and Kurama knew that. Those hands were the hands of someone living and not caring when he died, not if it was for a good cause. They were the hands of life.


	11. Hope

A/N: I would like to make a special shout out to _Purple_ in this chapter! I wish you had an account so that I could tell you exactly how much your reviews mean to me.

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**HOPE:**

There's something about Kazuma Kuwabara that's different from the rest of his team. Something that few can place a name to, but everyone can see even when they don't realize it. A glow, if you will, made up of this unbelievable air; white and pure and comforting.

Yukina noticed it the first time she saw Kuwabara. Even in the midst of everything that was going on, of fighting the Togoro Brothers and trying to get her to safety, she could feel it. A cool breeze against her skin, a soft touch against her cheek, and this unbelievable warmth that blossomed in her chest. At the time, she couldn't figure out what it was. It was a while until she would.

Months later, at the Dark Tournament, Yukina felt it again. Quelling her fear that they would be disqualified because no one was there to fight. But he stood up to fight Risho, legs trembling and chest heaving, and the fights continued. It was hard to watch because Kuwabara didn't seem to be a match for the team captain and Yukina almost looked away.

She would have if she hadn't caught Yusuke's eyes from across the stadium, watched how they never left the orange-haired fighter, and she felt it again. In that moment, Yukina knew exactly what she felt, what they all felt, when Kuwabara went into fight in battles he had no chance of winning.

It was hope. And it was something that, on most days, none of the other Spirit Detectives had.


	12. Scream

A/N: So, here's another! This one's a little...Iffy...But I guess it turned out okay. Better then some of my other ones at least. I guess, with writing about a character like the one I chose, you're stories will always turn out iffy. Hope you all like it though!

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**SCREAM:**

There were many things in this world that cause someone to scream. As a former Spirit Detective, and someone that had seen and been through things far worse than most, Sensui knew that to be a fact. People screamed when they were afraid. They screamed when they were mad. They screamed when they were in pain. It was human nature.

It was something that should have been easy to draw out of the weakest member of the current team of Spirit Detectives. The only human on the team. That should have made him easy to break; and if Sensui could break him, then he wouldn't have to give Gourmet the privelage of eating him.

Sensui had seen Kuwabara wail in battles before; seen him shout and screech and cry out when he was hit. So why wouldn't he scream now? When Sensui wanted him to scream, to cry and break, why didn't he make a single noise? He just laid there, hands tied behind his back, face bruised and dirt-streaked. Silent.

And in his eyes was something that Sensui had not seen in a long time. Not since he watched that cursed tape so many years before. He saw something that made him angry, something that he no longer had. Trust. The unfleeting trust that his team would come and rescue him and that he could hold out until then.

And, with a flash of inspiration, he knew exactly how to break that silly human being. So he grabbed a handful of hair and hauled the struggling form into the back of the cave. In front of the tv. Pushed in the tape. And the sound of someone screaming had never sounded so sweet.


	13. Fog

A/N: I have a very important question for everyone that reads this story. How many of you would like to see a few of these chapters turn into one-shots? If so, which chapters? I would love to know what you all think!

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**FOG:**

Storms don't bother Kuwabara. That's something that his team learned quickly. It didn't matter what sort of weather it was, rain or snow or thunder, he wouldn't turn down going on a mission. He'd braved storms in both Human World and Demon World without a single complaint, not a single frown.

Maybe that's why it surprised them all so much when, after three phone calls and standing outside for almost an hour before just letting themselves in to his house, Kuwabara claimed he couldn't go on the mission. Of course, all three of his team-mates protested. After all, it wasn't even storming outside. No rain, no lightning, no heavy winds. The world was as more still than it had been all year.

But they couldn't see what Kuwabara could. The fog outside was just that to them. Fog. A small hinderance that didn't bother Yusuke or Kurama, and did nothing more than tickle Hiei's Jagan eye. It wasn't even supposed to last for more than a few hours.

Those few hours, though, would be filled with Kuwabara sitting in bed; in a room with all the lights on and the curtains drawn and the doors closed. With eyes closed and head pounding and _don't look towards the window_; because that would be worse than just hearing the moans and the scrapes of claws against his house, worse then the migrain that their prescence brought, worse even than the looks that his team were giving him now.

Fog, more than anything else that the human had ever encountered, terriffied him. In the fog, his psychic abilities were a death sentence. In the fog, he could sometimes see the faces of the creatures that created it, could feel their being-less hands grab at his legs and his clothes and try to pull him down; but other times, all he could feel was how they all stared at him, wantingwantingwanting, and that might just have been even worse. It's for those reasons, and many more, that for the first time Kuwabara gives his team a firm 'no'.


End file.
